Andy Griffith, the beloved Sheriff Andy Taylor of TV’s iconic The Andy Griffith Show and dramatic defense attorney on Matlock, died at his North Carolina home Tuesday morning. He was 86. Andy’s close friend, former UNC President Bill Friday, broke the news to North Carolina’s WITN News, saying Griffith died at his Dare County home around 7:00 a.m.

A native of Mount Airy, N.C., Griffith originally wanted to be an opera singer, then a preacher, before turning to acting in college. In the late ’40s, he and his new bride, the former Barbara Edwards, set out with song-and-dance act that eventually evolved into his delivering folksy monologues on early TV variety shows such as The Ed Sullivan Show.

In 1954, Griffith’s star was launched when he starred as the bumpkin army draftee in Broadway’s No Time for Sergeants, and he repeated the role in the 1958 movie version, which also starred his later TV sidekick, Don Knotts. The two achieved immortality playing Sheriff Andy and Deputy Barney Fife from 1960-68 on The Andy Griffith Show, which also helped launch actor (and later Oscar winning movie director) Ron Howard, as Andy’s son Opie. The show was set in Mayberry, and America lapped it up.

As folksy in person as he was on screen, Griffith was married three times. His first, to Edwards, ended in divorce in 1972. They had three children, two daughters and a son who died in 1966. Griffith’s second marriage ended after five years, in 1981. He is survived by his third wife, Cindi.

What are your fondest memories of Andy Griffith? Share your thoughts with us in the comment box below!

Nineties child star Mara Wilson has revealed why she quit performing for cameras in a recent blog post: “Here is something no real celebrity will ever tell you: film acting is not very fun.”

In the post, a seemingly frustrated Wilson discusses her childhood career—she appeared in films such as “Matilda” (1996), “Mrs. Doubtfire” (1993) and “Miracle on 34th Street” (1994)—indicating the beauty standard for today’s big screen is too contentious for her, and the talent pool is impressive:

I think that there are many much more talented, much more conventionally attractive actresses out there who are taking the roles I would have been offered. To paraphrase the showtune, anything I can do, Anna Kendrick or Ellen Page or Jennifer Lawrence (or any actress from the plethora of actresses waiting to be “discovered”) can do better.

Wilson addresses the continued enthusiasm her fans have, many of whom ask her to return to film. She compares her early success to finger painting: “It’s flattering, but you haven’t finger-painted in years, and it seems like something you did a long, long time ago. You’ve realized you don’t particularly enjoy getting your hands dirty and that there are other outlets for your creative urges. But people are adamant: are you going to finger-paint again? When? Wait, you’re not? Why not?… That’s what it feels like.”

The former child star, now 24, attended New York University and now works as a playwright, according to Us Weekly. And yes, she does still act in theater productions and for voice-over work. But: “…no, you will not ever see me on “Dancing With The Stars.” Sorry.

Do you want Mara Wilson to return to film acting? Let us know your thoughts!